Nicotine Addiction - Learning Theory

Question 1

Operant conditioning - positive reinforcement

Answer 1

• if a person smokes a cigarette, they experience a feeling of pleasure, which is a reward, and this means that they are more likely to repeat that behaviour
• nicotine is a powerful reinforcer, since dopamine is released in the nucleus accumbens, producing a feeling of mild euphoria

Question 2

Operant conditioning - Koob and Le Moal (2008)

Answer 2

• they state that therefore positive reinforcement can explain both the early stages of smoking and how people take it up in the first place

Question 3

Operant conditioning - negative reinforcement

Answer 3

• if a smoker quits, this leads to acute withdrawal syndrome, with symptoms such as agitation and poor concentration
• a smoker may therefore struggle to stay away from cigarettes for very long
• they want to get rid of these unpleasant symptoms so smoke again
• this smoking of a cigarette stops an unpleasant experience, and it is therefore negatively reinforced

Question 4

Classical conditioning - primary reinforcer

Answer 4

• pleasurable effect that comes from smoking, due to how it affects the dopamine system and causes euphoria

Question 5

Classical conditioning - secondary reinforcers

Answer 5

• any other stimuli present at around the same time as someone smokes become associated with the pleasurable affect of smoking after a while
• these are known as secondary reinforcers
• a person may only smoke in certain environments, such as at the pub or in a certain smoking area
• they may also do it with the same people every time
• these all become associated with smoking and its pleasurable affect

Question 6

Classical conditioning - cue reactivity

Answer 6

• secondary reinforcers may also act as cues, with their presence producing a similar physiological and psychological response as nicotine itself
• there are 3 main elements to cue reactivity:
• desire and craving for a cigarette
• physiological signs of reactivity e.g. autonomic responses
• objective behavioural indicators e.g. how many draws of a cigarette are taken and how strongly

Question 7

(+) EVAL - support from non-human animal studies

Answer 7

• there is a significant amount of animal research which confirms the role of conditioning in nicotine addiction
• Levin et al. (2010) gave rates the choice of nicotine doses or water, by licking one of two spouts
• he found that the rats licked the nicotine spout significantly more often than the water one
• this suggests that the effects of the nicotine positively reinforce nicotine consumption in the rats
• this suggests that there is therefore a similar mechanism in humans

Question 8

(+) EVAL - research support for cue reactivity

Answer 8

• Carter and Tiffany (1999) did a meta-analysis of studies into the effects if cue reactivity
• they looked at 41 studies which investigated a range of substance addictions
• many of the studies that they analysed presented dependent smokers, non-dependent smokers and non-smokers with images of cues related to smoking e.g. ashtrays and lighters
• the participants would then self-report on their cravings, which would be put alongside physiological indicator findings
• The researchers found that dependent smokers reacted strongly to the cues, with high level of craving and increased physiological arousal
• these findings were consistent with the predictions made by cue reactivity theory

Question 9

(+) EVAL - real-life application

Answer 9

• a number of treatment programmes have been developed based on conditioning principles
• one of which is aversion therapy, which counter conditions an addiction, such as nicotine
• it associates the pleasurable effects of smoking with an aversive stimulus such as electric shock
• some studies have found this to be effective
• Smith (1998) conducted an experiment in which the participants gave themselves aversive shocks whenever they partook in smoking-related behavours
• after a year 52% of participants were still not smoking, more than double the proposal of people who continue to not smoke after deciding to quit without this treatment
• these treatments have measurable and substantial benefits, such as reducing NHS spending, improving health and overall saving lives